28 



THE GARDENER'S ASSISTANT. 



good fibrous loam, varying from one-fourth to 

 one-half the bulk, according as the fibrous loam 

 is more or less plentiful, may be safely used. 

 No fresh manure should be put into a newly- 

 made border, as it is liable to cause too luxuri- 

 ant growth. 



In many cases, borders cannot be made 

 entirely of fresh turfy soil on account of the 

 expense. Attempts should, however, be made 

 to improve the natural soil as much as possible 

 with the means at command. If the ground 

 is poor and sandy, manure alone will not pro- 

 duce the permanent improvement in the soil 

 which the trees require. A compost of well- 

 rotted farmyard manure, mixed with equal 

 portions of turf or pure loam, is much prefer- 

 able; and that this compost may be where it 

 will prove most useful, it should be placed 

 about half-way between the top and bottom. 

 Where good marl can be obtained, it forms 

 an excellent addition to a poor, sandy soil; and 

 a dressing of stiff calcareous clay is generally 

 very beneficial in its results on sandy soils. 

 The dressing of marl or clay may be from 2 

 to 4 or more inches thick, according to the 

 supply and the needs of the soil. If the soil 

 is naturally a heavy clay, too stiff and tenacious 

 for the healthy and fertile growth of fruit- 

 trees, it should be burned and ameliorated by 

 such means as have been already pointed out in 

 treating of soils. 



In situations where the climate is not suffi- 

 ciently warm to ripen the wood which would 

 be produced by trees in borders formed in the 

 manner directed, great advantages have re- 

 sulted from mingling stones with the soil of 

 the border. The stones may be broken rock 

 or roundish water-worn or land stones; or the 

 (h : bris of old buildings may be used, the old 

 plaster and lime-rubbish being a valuable ad 

 dition to the mixture, from which, however, 

 all old and decaying bits of wood ought to be 

 carefully removed, as they are liable to produce 

 fungi that are detrimental to the roots of 

 trees. The stones generally should be broken 

 up to the size of half a brick, although a few 

 larger pieces scattered through the mass will do 

 no harm. 



A layer 8 inches thick of stones or brick- 

 rubbish might be trenched into the soil, and 

 thoroughly incorporated with it, to great ad- 

 vantage, especially in a wet climate, and on 

 close and stiff soils. A mixed soil of this kind 

 — loam, or clay, stones, and rubbish from old 

 buildings — closely approaches in its mechanical 

 texture and chemical composition the famous 



fruit-producing soil in the Maidstone district of 

 the "Garden of England", the county of Kent. 

 In such a soil the trees produce a mass of 

 fibrous roots, which form a network on the 

 stones and other hard substances, and are pro- 

 ductive of a sturdy and fertile growth, result- 

 ing in abundant crops of fine fruit of the best 

 quality. 



The good effects of covering fruit-tree borders 

 with a layer of stones may not at all times be 

 apparent, but some first-rate growers of fruit 

 put great faith in that method of keeping the 

 roots near the surface. Under good manage- 

 ment, considerable success is attained by this 

 method on some soils, especially on those rest- 

 ing on a cold, stiff subsoil. Instead of running 

 down into such an ungenial subsoil, the roots 

 push upwards and spread over the soil beneath 

 the stones, where stimulating liquids and bene- 

 ficial gases from the atmosphere easily reach 

 them, and induce a healthy and fertile growth. 

 On stiff soils this method of covering the 

 borders with stones and applying liquid manure 

 of any approved kind, and which easily finds 

 its way through between the stones to the 

 roots, is superior to top-dressing or mulching 

 with farmyard manure. On light soils, how- 

 ever, farmyard manure is the best mulching 

 or top-dressing; and that made from peat-moss 

 litter, fresh from the stable, is one of the most 

 useful and effective. 



The kind of hard materials that may be 

 advantageously mixed with the soil is not un- 

 important; for the roots of fruit-trees take to 

 some in preference to others, and especially to 

 such calcareous substances as old mortar and 

 plaster. As a general rule, it is admitted that 

 sudden changes of temperature are prejudicial 

 to animal and vegetable health, and hence the 

 roots of plants prefer contact with those sub- 

 stances which maintain the most uniform tem- 

 perature. Gypsum possessing that property 

 in a high degree should be introduced in borders 

 where the climate is cold and variable. Old 

 plaster, for example, which can in some in- 

 stances be had in abundance, will best answer 

 the purpose if broken into bits that will 

 pass through a 4-inch ring. Lime compounds 

 of all kinds are slow conductors, therefore 

 pieces of old mortar and chalk lumps may be 

 freely used. Brick-bats — especially from bricks 

 made near London, which consist of a consider- 

 able quantity of carbonaceous matter — are very 

 suitable for mixing with the soil of a border 

 requiring what are termed warm materials. 



We have now endeavoured to point out the 



